Tulare County Biographies
R. C. STURGEON
Transcribed by Kathy Sedler
This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm
Among the sons of the Hawkeye state who have become residents of
California, R. C. Sturgeon occupies a prominent position in financial and
industrial circles and in the political affairs of Tulare county. He was born on
a farm in Wright county, Iowa, January 29, 1884 ; received a good education in
the schools of that county, and began his business career as a real estate
operator and insurance agent in the city of Clarion, Iowa. Later he became a
member of the firm of Bennett & Sturgeon, dealers in lumber and grain in
Clarion.
In 1913 he disposed of his interest in this business and came to Tulare
county, California. Here, with his father-in-law, he purchased five hundred and
twenty acres of the Paige & Morton ranch and embarked in stock raising. After a
little while he turned his attention to the breeding of high-grade Holstein
dairy cattle, in which he has been quite successful. In company with W. D. Cook
and J. K. Macomber, Mr. Sturgeon organized the Farmers State Bank of Tulare,
which opened its doors for business on January 3, 1921, and of which he is now
vice president.
Mr. Sturgeon is a republican in politics and from the time he became a
citizen of the county Mr. Sturgeon manifested an interest in public affairs. In
February, 1923, he was appointed a member of the Tulare county board of
supervisors by Governor Richardson, to fill an unexpired term, and on November
4, 1924, he was elected for a full term. As supervisor he has displayed the same
qualities that have distinguished him in his private affairs�the same careful
investigation of every proposition that comes before the board, a strict
integrity and a high order of executive ability.
In 1903 Mr. Sturgeon was united in marriage to Miss Maud D. Soults, a
native of Iowa, and their children are : Kenneth, Clarence and Hortense. Mr.
Sturgeon is a director of the Tulare Board of Trade, and also of the Tulare
County Fair Association. It is safe to say he was chosen for these positions for
his well-known progressive ideas and public spirit.
Source: History of Tulare County and Kings County, California � Kathleen
Edwards Small & J. Larry Smith, Vol. II, Chicago, The S. J. Clarke Publishing
Company, 1926., p. 270